Waiting (but not in line) for the iPhone 3G.

You know there’s a 32GB iPod touch, right?

That’s what I was thinking today as people formed long, crazy lines to buy the iPhone 3G, which comes in two sizes: 8GB and 16GB. There’s not much of a chance that Apple will drop the price of the iPhone 3G, given that it is now subsidized by AT&T, but there is a very good chance that they will release a model with more memory in the coming months.

I already stated my intention to get an iPhone 3G in an earlier post. I hate to sign on with AT&T, but I hate Verizon with a passion, and, given that they are taking over my current cell phone company, I don’t have much of a choice. Besides, Verizon’s hands are just as dirty as AT&T’s.

The iPhone 3G didn’t address all the issues I had with the original iPhone, but it is a definite improvement. 3G networking is great (assuming I am ever within range of a 3G network), but the built-in GPS is a much better feature anyway. What the unit itself doesn’t improve, third-party adds do. The iPhone can now be used as an ebook reader. It can now be used as a note taker and voice recorder. There is a third-party add that adds video recording (though I’m not sure if it’s an official app yet). I’m sure that a future app will add voice dialing.

I want an iPhone because it would be very useful to me. To me, it is a mobile browser, email client, and software platform; the phone aspect is just a bonus feature. I don’t want one as a fashion accessory or as a status symbol (though I must admit I wouldn’t mind causing a little envy). And I am more than willing to wait: both for my current contract to expire, and for a 32GB (or higher) model to be released.

Waiting has other benefits. First, you don’t have to stand in line for hours. Second, you don’t have to stand in line for hours just to find out the store has run out of its limited quantities. Third, you don’t have to stand in line just to find out the activation servers are down, and you’ve just bought an attractive brick. Fourth, you don’t have to stand in line, open the box, and discover you’ve gotten one of the inevitable early-run defective units.

Best of all, when the 32GB model is released, I get to feel smug while the early adopters are whining.

TAGS: iPhone